Kartik Tyagi pulls off a last-over heist to take Rajasthan home in a nail-biting affair


Kartik Tyagi pulls off a last-over heist to take Rajasthan home in a nail-biting affair

Kartik Tyagi

Punjab Kings and Rajasthan Royals lived up to their reputation while playing their first match in the second phase of IPL 2021 in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The two teams entertained the viewers with a terrific game of cricket. Though both Punjab and Rajasthan fought tooth and nail to start their campaign in the UAE with a victory, it was Rajasthan who managed to have the last laugh by two runs courtesy of Kartik Tyagi.

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Winning the toss, Punjab skipper KL Rahul made a surprising choice as he invited the opposition to bat first at the Dubai International Stadium. Rajasthan produced a magnificent batting performance in the first half of their batting innings. The team got off to a blistering start as the new opening pair of Evin Lewis and Yashavi Jaiswal started hitting from the very first ball. 

Lewis and Jaiswal stitched a crucial partnership of 54 runs in 5.3 overs. Arshdeep Singh gave the first breakthrough to Punjab by scalping the wicket of Lewis. Though RR’s wickets kept falling at regular intervals, the team managed to maintain a good run rate. Jaiswal was the top-scorer with 49 runs while Mahipal Lomror stunned the viewers by playing a class inning of 45 runs.

Kartik Tyagi unleashed the beast in the final over

Kartik Tyagi
Rajasthan Royals

The Royals were heading towards a 200+ score but there was a collapse of their batting line-up towards the end of their batting innings. The same resulted in the team putting up 185 runs in their 20 overs. Arshdeep Singh was a standout player for Punjab as he picked the maiden five-wicket haul of his IPL career.

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Just like Rajasthan Royals, Punjab also started their batting innings on a sensational note. The skipper Rahul along with Mayank Agarwal stitched a 120-run stand within 11.5 overs. Rahul scored 49 runs while Mayank added 67 runs to the scoreboard. Punjab were deemed the favorites to win the game but the final over by Kartik Tyagi changed the whole match.

The Kings needed just four runs for victory off six balls with Nicholas Pooran and Aiden Markram in the middle. However, Tyagi produced a masterclass as he gave away just one run while picking two wickets to revive his team from dead. 

Also Read: Watch: Mayank Agarwal takes magnificent diving catch to end Yashasvi Jaiswal’s inning